In these erratic times, political comedy is hard, OK? It’s tough to dream up jokes more ridiculous than the reality of the reign of Trump: no wonder many of the writers are struggling. But is that cause enough to be cruel?
Comedienne Samantha Bee directly addresses author and presidential candidate Marianne Williamson in a promo for her TBS show Full Frontal, and invites her to be a guest…if Williamson will drop out.
.@marwilliamson is our favorite Marianne Williamson running for president, but sometimes there can be too much of a good thing. So Marianne, come drop out on Full Frontal! We love you! #TheDropouts pic.twitter.com/kypAMLoRqW
— Full Frontal (@FullFrontalSamB) July 22, 2019
‘Hi Marianne Williamson, it’s me, Sam Bee! I am so loving your vibe, so I wanted to invite you over to my show for a very chill, very serious campaign dropout party,’ the host says.
‘We can have tea, throat lozenges, agave, and whatever else you use to make your voice sound so angelic. I’ll even let you read my aura! Think about it! Kisses! Soft, pillowy, cashmere hugs…’
Cockburn detects the desperation in the plea from Bee, whose previous career highlight was calling Ivanka Trump a ‘feckless…‘, well, watch the clip. A previous attempt to get Seth Moulton to bow out earlier this week gained little traction. Williamson, though, was a viral sensation after the first debate on NBC, setting the internet’s imagination alight with her demure manner, cosmic outlook and valiant claims to challenge New Zealand’s supremacy. Her performance was beyond parody…something which must make Full Frontal writers feel utterly helpless.
But is Samantha Bee’s writer’s block really a good enough reason to call for Williamson’s head? Or is she simply hoping to piggyback off the candidate’s groundswell support? There are more worthy campaigns for an attempted foreclosure: key figures from former Colorado governor John Hickenlooper’s campaign have abandoned him, and he’s polling behind Williamson. And former Maryland congressman John Delaney’s staff reportedly asked him to pull out by next month.
Singling out Williamson is simply the next stage in Samantha Bee’s drive to get a 2020 candidate to drop out on her show. In an earlier promo last month, the comedian suggested acceptable reasons to step down, including ‘I am Tulsi Gabbard’. Cockburn is baffled at Bee: why is she going after the anti-war left-of-center female candidates? Especially when, in celebrating her Emmy nomination, she wants people to ‘#voteforawoman’?
— Full Frontal (@FullFrontalSamB) July 16, 2019
If the criteria for pulling out is being woefully underqualified to meet the job requirements, Cockburn wonders whether the TBS executives might start a campaign of their own soon enough…
